00:00:06 Archita: What if the thing you have spent your whole life trying to fix was never broken? What if the part of you that felt different, slower behind was actually carrying a different kind of brilliance? Today's conversation is about reclaiming what we once hid and learning to lead from it.

00:00:26 Archita: Welcome to Inner Light, the space where we explore the quiet strength within us. The strength that often reveals itself through our hardest seasons. I'm your host, and today I am joined by Coach Willie Blake, a high performance coach who helps dyslexic professionals and entrepreneurs transform self-doubt into confidence and overthinking into clarity. In this episode, we are exploring what it really means to move from broken to brilliant, and how our perceived differences can become our leadership edge. Willie, I'm so glad to have you here today.

00:01:03 Coach Willie Blake: Yes. Thank you. Thank you for having me.

00:01:07 Archita: The honor is all mine. And. Yes, Willie. Uh, before we talk about leadership and confidence, I'd love to begin somewhere personal. So when you think back to that younger version of you, the child diagnosed with dyslexia in first grade, what did he believe about himself?

00:01:28 Coach Willie Blake: That first grader? Man, that first grader. He was resilient. He loved adventure. He loved curiosity. Uh, that's when I first got diagnosed with dyslexia, but didn't really know much about it. And growing up, a bunch of other stuff happened from other people in the world and society. But as that kid and as that first grader, just super outgoing, adventurous, just ready to ready to go after anything in the world.

00:02:01 Archita: That's, you know, it is actually a very heavy narrative for a child to carry. But, you know, believing you're broken before you've even had the chance to discover who you are. And I think many listeners, whether it is like sick or not, know that feeling of quietly trying to catch up because, you know, there's so many things that you want to explore that you want to, um, create. But then, uh, you know, uh, because of dyslexia, you cannot. But I am so glad that you, uh, figured a way out for yourself. And today you're here to share that journey with us, and let's let's stay with that. Uh, so I'm curious, um, Willie, what's the biggest misconception people have about dyslexia, especially in professional spaces?

00:02:50 Coach Willie Blake: Yeah. Biggest thing is that dyslexia means you just read backwards. And that is if you think of an iceberg, that is one part of the iceberg. If you think of a McDonald's menu that is, uh, the French fries of everything that goes on because there's so much more. It comes down to the way you process information from what you take in to how you interpret it, and then how you put it out and communicate it out. And so in any of those realms, when you bring the information in, when things that you see can look backwards, things that you hear might you might not be hearing that? Well, when it's interpreted in your mind, you might think that they said something. Maybe they didn't. And then when you talk about it out loud, for those who struggle with the speaking side, that it comes out very slowly. It's hard to read out loud to people and really just it's a big struggle that way. So the biggest misconception is that it's just reading backwards, but there's so much that goes into it when it comes to reading, writing, speaking and spelling, as well as math and anything else that has to do with words and numbers.

00:04:07 Archita: So basically, we don't know enough about dyslexia and what we know. It's just the tip of the iceberg, like you just said, because you know, the the social media and everywhere that we see, they don't show us beyond, you know, uh, the starting point of dyslexia, it's with so much more than not being able to read, uh, perfectly. It's so much more than that. So when someone internalizes these misconceptions, what tends to happen to their confidence over time?

00:04:41 Coach Willie Blake: Yeah. When they. So when you like. When I was in the first grade, I said I was this adventurous kid. But then I started shifting as people, as my friends were just like, Willy's going to this special class at the end of the day. He's a special kid. I don't want to hang. I want to hang out with normal kids. So you start feeling behind, and then throughout schooling and into high school and college, it's it's like you have to get these special tools and privileges from other people to then sit in front of the classroom. So there's no distractions to getting the notes and the presentations for the homework, that it takes double the time to be able to do anything. And it's like, man, these, these. It's hard. It's hard that it feels like you're so smart, but you can't communicate it out. It's like your skill is at a ten out of ten. But since your communication is at a three out of ten, everybody thinks that your skill level, your ability, your capability is at that three. And so living that life, you feel overwhelmed. You feel exhausted. You feel burnt at both ends. Not because you're not capable, but simply because, man, there's just so much going on that it's overwhelming.

00:06:00 Archita: Mhm. So it's not just about reading differently, it's about identity. It's about how a label quietly shapes self-worth. And that can occur for decades. So yeah that that makes so much sense. So you have spoken about chasing perfection and trying to please people. But I'm wondering was dyslexia the real struggle or was it the story that you built around it?

00:06:28 Coach Willie Blake: You nailed it. It was one hundred percent the story that I built around it, because it was about halfway through college where I realized dyslexia is really cool because of course, there's the things with reading and writing and speaking and stuff. But then there's the advantages of it, which people who are dyslexic and well as even branch out to other neurodivergents we are more creative, we are better at problem solving. We think outside of the box. We are so great when it comes to patterns and perspective, and we're great with sympathy and empathy because we've had to go through so much. We know what it's like for other people to go through challenges. And so it's just when I found that out, I realized there were both sides of the coin, and it really came down to me on what I focused on before. I believed in the things I couldn't do. And of course, my brain doesn't want to work against me. It likes being comfortable. So it's going to continue to think of, I can't do this, I can't do that. But now that I know the other side, I can start moving that energy from the can't. And now I can do things. I can be more creative. I can read even though it's going to take me a while. I can start my own business, or write my own book, or have a healthy relationship with somebody. All these cans started coming and it all started. And it began from first seeing what the reality of it is. A lot of people think that reality is the emotions and the experiences that they feel. It's not. It's your experience is based off of everything from senses to obstacles to joys. Everything you you have dealt with in life makes the person who you are today. But that doesn't mean it's just reality. That just means that's what you've experienced. And then when you talk with other people, you start gathering information, watching videos, listening to podcasts, actually learning more perspectives on the other side of things. You begin to understand truly what the truth is and what is actually out there. And then at that point, you get to decide on which way to walk. The shy kid focused on Kant. The Me today focuses on the can, and that transition is astronomical. But it simply came from first just making that decision.

00:09:08 Archita: Wow, that's so fascinating. I mean, it's really interesting how that story influenced your decisions in work, relationships and even leadership. And it sounds like the deeper pattern wasn't incapability. It was self protection. And sometimes what we call Ambition is actually fear. Wearing a suit and I'm so glad you are able the the you know, a younger one was able to overcome that over time. So, um, really, for someone listening right now who feels different in their workplace, how does that self-doubt typically show up in everyday behavior?

00:09:48 Coach Willie Blake: Self-doubt shows up in feeling that you can't do something and that other people are to blame. So in this workplace specifically it, when someone sends you an email and then a boss comes to you two hours later and says, hey, did you check your email? And you're like, oh, I have it. So then you check it, you read the email and whatever, whether they wrote it themselves or AI wrote it, you can't you can't understand it. And so you're trying to understand emails. You're trying to understand in office memos when people are having Conversations, and they're using the jargon of the business world. You're sitting in the meeting thinking, I don't even know the words that they're saying. They're talking about something with accounting, something with finance. And I just don't understand the big words. So I hope and pray that at the end of whatever presentations going on, that they actually summarize it so I can understand it. It feels so overwhelming with the information that you have to do the tasks that you have in hand. Take a little bit longer than the standard because workplaces aren't built. They're built to be able to be systemized. And the systems that people use are for the average typical users. Neurodivergent people and dyslexics aren't typical users. We need a few more tools or a few different tools in order for us to be the most efficient. And so, corporations and businesses that haven't incorporated that, you can see workers and employees really having a hard time and taking a little bit more time in doing things simply because those tools aren't in place.

00:11:41 Archita: And that that must be so unfair for, uh, you know, uh, neurodivergent people like you just said, because it, it also builds, uh, so much insecurity deep down in you knowing that you can't even do things that, you know, uh, other people are easily doing. And it must be really difficult to accept that about you. So, um, you know, here's what I'm really curious about. So when someone keeps shrinking themselves like that, what's the long term cost?

00:12:13 Coach Willie Blake: If you keep shrinking yourself like that, I'm talking to you as the listener. The long term cost is the feeling of giving up that drive that you had when you were a kid or when you were a young adult. It's gone. You stop listening to your heart. You stop listening to your soul. You don't trust your gut anymore, and you listen to what other people say. You just go throughout the day. It feels like there's no more meeting. Food starts to lose its taste. You feel like everything that you do is just on repeat. You lay in bed, scrolling through social media or playing a game or streaming something, simply hoping that you can have that free time and have it last longer. Because you know that once you fall asleep, the whole next day is going to happen. You're going to go to bed, wake up, and have to repeat the entire day again of a day in which you just don't like, and that long term self doubt is going to eat at you. You're going to start to blame other people, and inwardly you're going to feel like you're a failure. But you don't want to feel like a failure. But it's going to feel that way because it feels like, did I really give up on my goals? Did I really that that dream I had as a kid to be an astronaut? Maybe. I don't want to be an astronaut now, but maybe there's this, this other wish that I have that well, now I can't do it because there's so much that I need to do. You don't know how to try new things, and that taste and experience of trying new things is just going to feel so out of reach that every day is going to be mundane. It's going to feel, of course, comfortable. You know, how to do your days, but it's going to feel that. There's nothing really worth doing, and that's what's going to happen long term.

00:14:20 Archita: And that's that's so scary because, you know, it makes us realize that the cost isn't just professional, it's emotional. It's it's physical, and it's the quite erosion of self trust and self-identity, which is the most important thing. So yeah, you're absolutely right, Billy. But but you made a shift at some point and you decided that you weren't going to just survive with dyslexia, but you're going to lead with it. So what changed internally when you made that decision?

00:14:54 Coach Willie Blake: Yeah, it I wanted something. That's what the change was. I finally wanted something. It was about halfway through college when I was switching from my degree, from accounting to business, and I came across this statistic and it wasn't motivational or anything, but it said ninety five percent of CEOs read fifty or more books a year. For a dyslexic, maybe I read an average of one book before, but fifty? That seemed way too far out there, but maybe twelve. We're in the month of February. Back in twenty eighteen, it was twelve. Books didn't seem that hard, and so I started to read. I went to the bookshelf, grabbed the smallest book because I wanted to make sure I hit the twelve. Didn't want to read the big ones. Small purple book called Rich dad. Poor dad. Opened it to chapter one and started reading and I didn't know what I know now, but that that younger Willie, him just wanting to do something and then actually taking a step toward it, made me into the person who I am today. That feeling from back then of I just want something. I just want to read a book. I just want to read twelve books. Fifty would be nice, but I just want to read twelve. Started this whole. Cataplasm. I know that's not the right word, but that seems like a really cool word of everything that had happened from there, because it went from twelve to forty to fifty to sixty books every single year. To be able to start a business and being an author and speaking on stages, inspiring people and all that just came from picking a single thing. And that was a book on the bookshelf and reading chapter one. And so the confidence that comes from when you just start something, it's immeasurable.

00:16:56 Archita: Wow. That's that's so amazing. I mean, it it also makes us realize that, uh, when you really want something bad enough, you will initially you will do something about it. And when you take that first step, I think that's when change starts, no matter how small that first step is. So it's all about taking it. And that's powerful because it's it's not about becoming someone new. It's about removing the shame attached to who you already are and improving what's already there. And I'm so glad you were able to achieve all of that. Um, but even after doing this work, I imagine doubt still whispers sometimes. Um, so when old narratives resurface, how do you prevent yourself from slipping back into I am broken?

00:17:48 Coach Willie Blake: Great question. I think about so I grew up in a in a Christian home, and I learned this lesson recently is that Christians believe in Christ. And while Christ was suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane to suffer for the sins, he had doubt. He had doubt. He said, father, take this cup away from me. But if not, let your will be done. And I'm not making this religious or anything, but it's so interesting that the perfect. The perfect man who is here had doubt. Each of us can have doubt. And we should have doubt. We should be questioning things that we're doing because we're not. We're not doing everything right when we're two years old. We're just learning. And we're trying a bunch of different tastes and smells and sights and everything going on. So doubts are really a part of who we are supposed to be, and that doesn't mean that it comes to then what we do with the doubt on the back end it. I have this doubt. I have this question in my mind of is this right for me? Then if you just sit in self-pity, you start to self-sabotage yourself. You get all these ideas. You get into this thing called analysis paralysis. You over overanalyze everything to where you just don't do anything. You don't move forward when the doubts there. But the ones who are able to get out of it, and how I personally found my confidence was even though I had questions, even though I had the doubt, I still kept moving forward. I moved during the doubt. I think that is one of the biggest lessons that for the clients that I have and I share with them, which is even though you're questioning, even though you don't know what is the perfect thing, just pick a single thing to do because there is power in movement. When you have that momentum to move forward, then your body is able to then pick which direction to go. But if you're sitting in like a parked car, it doesn't matter where you turn the steering wheel because you're not moving. But when you are, then you can guide the car to where it needs to go. And if you pick a wrong turn, you just make a U-turn and go the other way. But none of that can happen if you stay parked. So I keep telling people, don't stay parked. The doubts that you have of wondering if this is the right path or not have them. That's part of who we are as humans and keep moving forward.

00:20:42 Archita: I love that perspective because it's so reassuring. You know, to know that even the most perfect man ever also had doubts. It makes us feel better about ourselves, and it makes it feel normal to have setbacks, to have doubts. But I think at the end of the day, what really matters is returning back to yourself and and maintaining that confidence because, um, confidence isn't something that you just achieve once. It's something that you actively maintain and that feels honest because it's not a destination. It's a discipline. And maybe also a relationship with yourself. So yes, you you described it perfectly. So really, for the listener who still feels behind or who still believes they are the slow one in the room, what would you want them to understand about their difference right now?

00:21:37 Coach Willie Blake: See that it's actually your biggest advantage that it truly is a superpower, because there's always something good you can take from it. We've lived our life based off the experiences that we have, and unfortunately, society and the workplace has put everything on. If you're not average, then you're bad. That's not the case because even some some of the great people and the great companies that are out there were made because they were different. So individuals who are dyslexic have ADHD, autism or anything that's neurodivergent. I'd say to you, you have a really cool superpower because there's a lot of great things that you can do. Learn about them, learn about them, figure out how that works for you, and then just pick one thing you can do and that's enough.

00:22:39 Archita: That's some great advice, Willy. And if there's one thing I'm taking from today's conversation, it's this. That the thing you labeled as weakness may simply be strength waiting for ownership. So take ownership of that. Accept it because you're just amazing as you already are. So, Willy, for those who resonated deeply with this conversation and want to work with you or learn more, where can they find you?

00:23:08 Coach Willie Blake: Yes, best place to find me? Go to my website, Coach Willy com and there you'll be able to find the links to all my social medias so that we can connect. Send me a message. I'd love to find more neurodivergent individuals and people who want to also work with me and grab free resources that I have. It'll also be there.

00:23:31 Archita: Amazing. So I'll make sure all those details are included in the show notes, so that our listeners can feel free to reach out to you whenever they want and build confidence in themselves. So thank you so much for this amazing conversation today, Willy. It was really so grounding and resonated with me a lot. So if today's conversation stirred something in you as well, sit with it. Ask yourself where have I mistaken difference for deficiency? Your inner light does not shine despite your story, it shines through it. Thank you for listening to Inner Light. If this episode spoke to you, share it with someone who needs to hear it. Until next time, stay rooted, stay aware and trust the brilliant that was always there.